Fresh rain, snow disrupts relief operation in north

Another fresh spell of rain and snowfall that started on Tuesday has again disrupted relief activities in the northern districts of Pakistan's North West Frontier Province (NWFP), the Northern Areas and Pakistan-administered Kashmir, according to provincial relief department officials. "Nearly 270 people have been killed and some 244 have been reported injured in a series of landslides, avalanches and roof collapsing incidents over the last one-and-a-half months. Besides, the heavy rain and snowfall have also caused huge damage to property in the northern mountain range," Ghulam Farooq Khan, head of NWFP's provincial relief cell, told IRIN from Peshawar. The northern districts of the NWFP, including Kohistan, Mansehra, Batagram, Swat, Chitral, Shangla, Lower Dir and Upper Dir, have received record heavy rain and snowfall, the highest in the past 30 years. The longest spell, extending over the first two weeks of February, has caused huge losses to houses, crops and livestock. Nearly 4,500 houses have been reported damaged or collapsed, according to the provincial relief cell. Another 42 people were killed in the Northern Areas, while at least 2,000 houses were reported damaged due to heavy rain and snowfall in the region, according the provincial crisis management cell. "Four helicopters have been deployed for rescue and relief operation in the districts of Swat, Abottabad, Mansehra and tribal areas of Khyber agency, wherever the weather is allowing the aerial flight," Maj-Gen Shaukat Sultan, head of Pakistan's Inter Services Public Relations (ISPR) directorate, told IRIN. Almost 70 percent of roads are blocked in the northern parts of the country due to heavy snowfall, landslides and avalanches, and hundreds of people have been cut off from the rest of the country. "The continuing snowfall is hampering relief operations and we've not had access to several areas over the last two weeks due to a disruption of the communication links," head of provincial relief cell added. Meanwhile, according to the country's meteorological department, the recent spell of rains and snowfall in the northern region would continue for another couple of days.